1. Field of the Invention
The present invention pertains to the art of vending machines and, more particularly, to an adjustable rear spacer wall assembly which enables a compartment to be readily adapted to store bottles and cans of various sizes.
2. Discussion of the Prior Art
Vending machines for dispensing cans and bottles typically include multiple compartments for storing the cans and bottles in columns. Each compartment is suitable for storing a depth of one or more cans or bottles. An adjustable product spacer that allows the vending of a variety of differently sized cans or bottles is often located at the rear of each compartment. The product spacers hang from the column walls and are often difficult to reposition. A person loading the vending machine is required to reach into the back of the column in order to reposition the product spacers.
For example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,529,207 discloses a vending machine having an adjustable retainer assembly. The retainer assembly includes a rear retainer, which extends across a compartment for storing bottles or cans, and intermediate retainers. The retainers are adjustably attached to compartment column walls. The column walls are provided with a row of slots and the retainers include hooks for engaging the compartment wall slots. The retainers may be adjusted to facilitate various sized bottles by positioning the hooks in the appropriate slots. However, the adjustable retainer assembly does not provide a quick method of adjusting the retainers. That is, a route or service person loading the containers is still required to reach into the columns and manually unhook the retainer and move it to its desired position and then rehook the retainer. This method of repositioning the retainers is considered undesirable and tedious.
In addition, it is becoming more common for manufacturers to produce various sized cans and bottles. It is desirable to have a single vending machine capable of accommodating a variety of sizes of bottles and cans. Moreover, the variety of available can and bottle sizes is increasing the frequency with which a person needs to adjust the retainer or column assemblies of the vending machines. Therefore, there exists a need in the art for a vending machine capable of accommodating various sized cans and bottles by providing an easily adjustable retainer or column assembly. It is an object of the present invention to provide a vending machine that improves vendor set up, reduces conversion time, and improves customer convenience by incorporating a rear spacer wall assembly that is easily adjustable from the front of the columns of a vending machine cabinet.